What was the point of banning pork?

  • Thread starter Thread starter nfinke
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
I don’t know if it is sinful, but rather more appropriate for expressing the ineffable quality of the Supreme Being. Traditionally, it is not written because of the concern regarding an intentional or unintentional deletion.
 
If I kill a chicken, I can eat the whole thing in less than a day. If a family is sharing it, one chicken does not go far. Killing a goat or a lamb, that can be eaten by a large family in a short period of time, or, salted and cured quickly

If I kill a pig, it takes a long time to eat it. Even preparing a pig, for a nomadic people in the desert, it would be nearly impossible to do in a time frame that would keep the pork safe.
 
That’s what I’ve heard, too. That pork wasn’t always cooked thoroughly, and people could get diseases like Trichinosis (not sure about spelling). Today, we know to cook pork thoroughly, and it’s really quite safe if we do. Orthodox Jews, however, still adhere to the prohibition, I suspect as a matter of tradition, or because they still consider pork – even thoroughly cooked pork – to be impure.
 
But why are pigs considered unclean in the first place? I think that’s the question…
 
Judaism does not answer this question. But we trust that if G-d described the eating of this food as an abomination, there must have been a good reason for His doing so.
 
I like the reasons and insights given above. It’s the question I don’t like, second-guessing God. I’m saying this mostly for myself, but also because it bears on thus question, and many others like abortion, divorce, fornication, homosexuality, etc.
 
Last edited:
I’ve always understood it as:

Humans shouldn’t eat carnivores. Pigs will eat anything thus can carry pathogens that herbivores won’t (chicken, cattle, sheep etc). Modern day farming practices don’t allow their pork products to consume meat anymore.

So probably hygiene issue more than anything else.
 
“second guessing” seems to imply I’m criticizing God’s judgement or actually saying He made a bad decision, which isn’t the case. Wanting to understand someone’s reasoning is distinct from thinking their reasoning is questionable. I’m sure God obviously had a good reason for doing it, I’m just saying I cant see it, which is true for many things.
 
nfinke said:
what was the point ?
Click to expand...
The way I have always seen these odd laws like not eating pork, and no mixed fabrics, etc. is that God was trying to set the Jews apart from other people back in the Old Testament. These practices became less necessary by the time Jesus came, and the Law was fulfilled. The moral laws were meant to be eternal, but the customary laws were more for setting God’s people apart from the other people in that day and age until Jesus came.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top